Award-winning playwright Katoni Hall's Blood Quilt Comes to DC's Arena Stage April 2015

DC's Arena Stage will host award-winning Katoni Hall's new play, The Blood Quilt, April to June 2015. This world premiere of this comedy-drama focuses on four sisters who gather back at their childhood home,off the coast of Georgia, to sew a quilt in honor of their late mother.

According to the show's promotional material, when the sisters' "reunion turns into a reading of their mother’s will, everyone must grapple with a troubling inheritance. Stitched with history and ritual, laughter and tears, will their “blood quilt” bind the family together or tear them apart forever?" 

You may already be familiar with Ms. Hall's play The Mountaintop, about Dr. Marin Luther King on the night before his assassination. In New York, the play starred Samuel L. Jackson and Angela Bassett.

I can't wait to see The Blood Quilt - and to also see what the actual quilt will look like! No word yet on which actresses will play the sisters. I'm sure, though, that many of quilting guild will take in this new work!  Enjoy!

Gee's Bend Play, PNWAA Quilts in Seattle

The play, "Gee's Bend," directed by Karen Lund, is now on stage at the Taproot Theatre in Seattle until February 28, 2009. A special discussion Feb 18 with Gee's Bend quilters is now sold out. The discussion on Feb 21 has tickets available. The sistah quilters of the Pacific Northwest African American Quilters guild will have a post-play discussion on Feb 25. There will also be an auction of PNWAA quilts, on displayed at the theatre, on Sunday, March 8. (Photo of actors Geoffery Simmons and Samantha Rund by Erik Stuhaug.) Enjoy!

A Civil War Christmas play - Ora Jones as seamstress

Actress Ora Jones is receiving rave reviews for her portrayal of Mary Lincoln confidant, seamstress and sistah quilter Elizabeth Keckley in "A Civil War Christmas," a musical by Paula Vogel. The play runs through December 21 at the
Long Wharf Theater, 222 Sargent Drive, New Haven, CT. Phone (203) 787-4282. Running time: 2 hours 30 minutes.

You can read the online reviews of the play by the NY Times and Theatre Mania. Click on the paper's names. Enjoy!

Martha Ann's Quilt Play debuts at P.S. 76

Earlier this year I was invited to P.S. 76 - A. Philip Randolph Elementary School in Harlem - for my very first author's visit for Martha Ann's Quilt for Queen Victoria. The school could not have been more welcoming, particularly Principal Charles Deberry, Ms. Marie Vallon, Librarian, and dear Cleo! The students asked engaging questions and were so enthusiastic about Martha Ann's story. Well, image my surprise to learn that one 4th grade class went on to stage their class play based on Martha Ann's Quilt for Queen Victoria! Mr. Saneel Boodram, who works with 4th graders at P.S. 76 and is a 1999 filmmaking graduate from the New York Institute of Technology, wrote and directed the play. I asked Mr. Saneel, as he's called, about the play and his interest in using performance in teaching.

1. What made you interested in combing teaching and performing? "Children love to perform. It makes them feel important, special; dedicated to the roles that are given to them. When you teach a student to perform - you are also teaching them to be disciplined, focused and more independent. No one can make that part special but themselves. Combining teaching and performing, to me, levels out the school year for the class. It's not all about just the books, the math and the science. The Arts is a great gift you can introduce to a child. The # 1 factor for combining teaching and performing - RESPONSIBILTY. " Mr. Saneel went on to comment, "It is [the student's] responsibility to learn their lines, their body movements, when to speak, walk, run, cheer, look directly into the eyes of another cast member, cry, etc. It also brings out their personalities more - students who were quite shy came out of their shells and put on a show in front of the audience. They get recognition, love, praises from performing in plays."
2. Can you share with us the key factors in putting on a school play? "The MAIN key factor in putting on a school play is a script. Once you have gotten down all the characters, dialogue, settings, time into one script then everything else is a go. Finding voices to act out the words of the play can be a bit of a pickle. Auditioning 9 and 10 year olds (the age range for 4th grade) for the roles can be tense, for me and the students vying for a part. Rehearsals, costumes, sound effects, lighting, emotions of characters are all key factors for a school play."
3. There were two plays your class performed. The other play showcased famous African Americans, including Malcolm X, The Supremes, and Dorothy Dandridge. How did your 4th graders relate to Martha Ann's Quilt for Queen Victoria as one of the year's production? "Martha Ann's Quilt for Queen Victoria, part one of Celebrating Diversity, was the only major play production of the school year. I did my play in May - with acting, musical performances, costumes, emotions and a lesson learned. The students related very well to the subject area - about their ancestors. You see, the Martha Ann play taught them that ordinary black folk from far away made a difference for their future. They weren't glamorous, fabulous or popular but it set the path for good things to come for future generations. The second play taught them that through sacrifice and motivation famous people made a difference for the famous African-Americans today. The entire lesson was a connecting circle - Martha Ann sacrificed and followed her dream - just as the famous people did in the second part of the play."

I understand the students who performed in the Martha Ann play were outstanding! The young girl who played Martha Ann learned her lines and emotional cues within a month. The young girl who played Queen Victoria - complete with a royal dress and tiara - even had a British accent! I'm sure the real Martha Ann Ricks would have been PROUD! Thanks Mr. Saneel!

Suzan-Lori Parks 365 Days 365 Plays

Suzan-Lori Parks, who won 2002 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for Topdog/Underdog, wrote a play a day for one year. She says (from Amazon.com):

"The plan was that no matter what I did, how busy I was, what other commitments I had, I would write a play a day, every single day for a year. It would be about being present and being committed to the artistic process every single day, regardless of the 'weather.' It became a daily meditation, a daily prayer celebrating the rich and strange process of a writing life."

Check out the plays in the book, 365 Days - 365 Plays. Play #26 is titled Mrs. Keckley & Mrs. Lincoln. Mrs. Keckley was the Sistah dressmaker to the President's wife. The 3-page piece involves a conversation between the two women - I won't give away the surprise ending!

Gee's Bend Quilts in Baltimore, Activities

If you're in the Baltimore - Washington DC area, be sure to visit Gee's Bend: The Architecture of the Quilt at the Walters Art Museum. The exhibit features about 40 quilts and is open to the public from June 15 - August 26, 2007. FREE admissions.

A few of the upcoming museum events: June 15 - 7pm Panel discussion with eight of the Gee's Bend quilters and moderated by William Arnett. $10 + registration. June 16 - from 11am - 4pm - Gee's Bend Community Day!

• Booksigning by the Gee’s Bend quilters
• Storytellers and musical performers
• The African American Quilters of Baltimore quilt demos, interactive activities, and more!
• Kyra Hicks, author of Martha Ann’s Quilt for Queen Victoria - reading and booksigning
• Sparky & Rhonda Rucker's musical performance

June 22 6:30pm - 8:30pm. "If This Quilt Could Talk," play inspired by the Gee's Bend quilts featuring the Morgan State University theatre department. Free performance.

For more information call 410-547-9000, ext. 300.

Intimate Apparel, the Seamstress Play

Visiting the Richmond, Va area by May 20? Buy a ticket to see Intimate Apparel, a play by Lynn Nottage, at the Barksdale Theatre at Willow Lawn. Intimate Apparel is the story about Esther, a 35-year-old illiterate seamstress, who stitches ladies undergarments for a living. Esther, who with the help of friends, writes letters to George, a man she ends up marrying. George, alas, is no good...

Visit the theatre's blog about the play! Click here to read about the play and see wonderful photos of the lead actors, such as Adanma Onyedike (Esther), Chris Lindsay (George), Tawnya Pettiford-Wates, Jennifer Massey, and Andy Nagraj (owner of the shop where Esther sews). If you can't get to Richmond, you can read the play, too. The play won the American Theatre Critics New Play Award and was short-listed for the Pulitzer Prize in 2004. Have you seen the play in one of its productions? How was it?

Gee's Bend Play

The Alabama Shakespeare Festival's production of "Gee's Bend" is touring to various AL communities such as Selma, Camden and Birmingham. The new play by Elyzabeth Gregory Wilder tells is set in Wilcox County, AL and highlights the life of Sadie Pattway, from her teenage years to her 70s, and the other women in her quilting circle in Gee's Bend, AL.

The actress Roslyn Ruff plays Sadie. Atlanta actress Margo Moorer plays her sister Nella. The mother, Alice Pettway, is played Maura Gale. The fouth character, Sadie's husband Macon, is acted by Billy Eugene Jones, shown in the photo with Ruff. The play has opened to sold out audiences and received warm reviews.